Features

The sights, sounds and smells of Christmas come alive this Sunday as the Williston Woman’s Club presents the Christmas Tour of Homes featuring four magnificent houses, their decor and their generous owners.
A tradition that dates back almost 20 years has been resurrected by the club as a fund-raiser with monies earmarked for a covered pavilion at Williston Elementary School.

It was just a couple of hours into the New Year, 1945, when Ray Knisley, 86, of Chiefland, peeked out of a freezing foxhole after being awakened by the sound of gunshots.
His unit, the 117th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron (Mecz), had been dug in about 30 miles south of Strasbourg, Germany. There was snow on the ground, and in the light of a full moon he thought he saw a patrol coming in with German prisoners. He hunkered back in to put on his boots and a jacket

The Log Cabin Quilters met Thursday, Sept. 30 at the Levy County Quilt Museum. We have had a busy week. We ended up taking the clothes to Cross City. There is a place there, next door to the Dixie County Advocate, that takes everything.

We’re about to get everything put back where it belongs. We still have a small leak in the roof but when that is taken care of, we will finish up.

We held the first meeting of our new year on Sept. 8. President Eileen Nuce started the meeting by asking what we did during the summer. Two members had serious health problems; they were President Eileen and Carolyn Agazarm. It was good to know they are doing better now. Elsie Neal has continued to make a good recovery from knee replacement surgery.

Some of the members traveled during the summer. Delores Darpino returned from her trip with unusual souvenirs, two adorable kittens.

Workforce Connection’s new “Learn and Earn” program helps make hiring and training new employees affordable through subsidized on-the-job training and paid internships.

The program kicks off Oct. 18 with an initial focus on professional and business services and law enforcement. Rolling enrollment continues through April 2011, targeting different industries or occupations each month.

George Munsell will tell you he was born in Miami in 1939 then he’ll fast-forward to the time, 14 years later, when he would deliver papers on his bicycle then stop at the liquor store to get the coins he was paid with turned into bills.
One day the liquor storeowner told George’s dad, “I’m going to make that boy a jockey when he’s 16.” His dad was fine with the idea.

On July 1-2, Williston School of Dance hosted its most prestigious workshop master class to date, as Michael Patrick Gallagher flew in for eight hours of master Irish dance instruction.

Gallagher is a two-time World Champion Irish dancer as well as a longtime “Riverdance” lead.

Gallagher hails from County Donegal, Ireland, and currently resides in Arizona. The school made his acquaintance several years ago when artistic director Sarah Ingley and her son used to travel to Gallagher’s workshops in Georgia.

Back in 1938 as the country was on the fringe of coming out of the Great Depression and right before terror would break out in the Second World War, little Anna Johnson watched with delight as her mother, Thersia, would make treats for the family of five girls from whatever fruit was available.

Hot, sweltering days were spent in the Kentucky-mountain kitchen as she cooked jellies and jams from scratch.